Boeing 727-2Q8 N831L

Summary

On 8 August 1998 at about 07:12 local time, a Boeing 727-2Q8 registered N831L, operated by Delta Airlines Inc., was involved in an incident near Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. 155 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

8 August 1998 at 07:12

Classification

Incident

Location

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Nearest airport

McCarran International (KLAS)

Coordinates

Not recorded

Aircraft

Boeing 727-2Q8

Registration

N831L

Category

Airplane

Engines

3

Operator

Delta Airlines Inc.

Operating rule

Part 121: Air Carrier

Purpose of flight

Unknown

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Cincinnati

Aircraft damage

Minor

Weather

VMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

LAX98IA261

Nobody was injured.

The airport personnel's failure to properly mark the ditch hazard and the taxiway boundaries surrounding it, and, the captain's failure to maintain a situational awareness of his location with respect to the taxiway layout. The dark night lighting condition was a factor.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The flight had just pushed back from a new terminal at the airport. The crew had checked the NOTAMS for the flight and discussed one, which cautioned pilots to be aware of a ditch that was not easily visible nor marked, which was located directly across from the new terminal. The crew discussed the ditch during preflight and also on their earlier arrival into the airport; however, the crew did not see the ditch. The crew taxied across the ramp to a hold point and called ground control for a taxi clearance. Initial taxi clearance had the airplane turning right on the closest parallel taxiway. Due to weight considerations, the crew requested a runway change. Ground control then had the airplane turn right on the outboard parallel taxiway. The captain said he looked down at the taxiway diagram and confused his position with taxiway C4 rather than Spot 4. The captain then taxied the airplane forward across taxiway C, through the ditch, and made a right turn onto taxiway Bravo. After encountering the ditch, the crew came to a consensus that there was nothing unusual about the airplane to preclude continuing the flight. The flight attendants did not convey to the flight crew the extent of motion in the back of the airplane, nor did the flight crew ask the flight attendants about their ride in the back of the airplane. The flight to their intended destination was uneventful. The oncoming crew discovered the minor damage to the airplane. At the time of the incident, the infield area was not lit or marked to help illuminate the ditch, and the ditch had no boundary hazard markings. One month prior to this event, another air carrier had one of their airplanes taxi through the same area. After the two incidents, airport operations ordered and placed plastic reflective delineators around the ditch area.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.